Endgame
by Mistress Scribbles
Summary: 13th and Final part of the New Adventures. The young warriors stand united once more with their few remaining allies against powerful foes. All will fight. Some will fall. Will any of them ever finally make it home? Violence, death, adult themes.
1. Chapter 1

ENDGAME

-x-

One

-x-

_There's another world out there – a world of magic, with a different set of rules to our own… only, those rules are in danger of being eroded… the whole world is in danger of being destroyed by the Evil One. Why should you care? You should care because, once that world falls, ours will most likely be next. That world and our world are linked, and if that world is to be saved at all, then it is warriors from Earth that are to save it. Six warriors from Earth, strong in magic, strong in body and, most importantly, strong in heart are convening with their allies at a tavern in a deserted town. Now is the time that has been in the making since they were children. This is where their enemy waits, and where they will do or die. And this is where it all began._

-x-

Bobby O'Brien sat down heavily. 'You can talk.'

There was a heavy pause. Everybody looked at Uni. 'Of course,' she sighed. 'You didn't know that.'

'How could you not tell me?'

'I didn't really tell anybody until my hand was forced…'

'You don't _have_ any hands…' muttered Eric before being painfully jabbed in the ribs by Diana's elbow.

'By that point,' Uni continued, 'you'd left us. I'm sorry you had to find out last. I wanted to tell you…'

'So why didn't you?'

Uni glanced downwards. 'I thought it was best… I wanted to protect myself.'

'You mean, you didn't trust us,' frowned Bobby. 'You didn't trust _me_.'

'Bobby O'Brien,' snapped Sheila, harshly, 'that's enough of your distraction tactics. Where the Hell have you been for the last six months, and how did you ever end up with these… these scavengers?'

'Actually,' mumbled Pistol, 'we in't scavengers any more, we're more like…'

'Not now, Pistol,' sighed Bobby. 'I didn't really know where I was going, or what I was doing. I just knew I had to get away, before I… before I hurt anyone else.' He blinked up at Hank, his expression full of worry. 'Your eye… that… that wasn't me, was it?'

'No, Bob,' Hank replied. 'I've got nobody to blame for that but myself.'

'I ran into these guys four months ago,' Bobby continued. 'Well… that is, they ran into me. Well… actually, they tried to rob a market I was at and I stopped 'em.'

''E said we was doing it all wrong,' added Pistol with a sheepish grin.

Sheila scowled at her brother. 'So you _joined_ them? You helped them to rob honest people like the ones who've taken us in today?'

'Hey! I helped them to make people feel good about giving them the things that they need. You know, like we used to, back in the old days?'

'And how was yelling Tarantino at people supposed to do that, exactly?' piped Diana.

'That was the emergency card,' Bobby explained. 'They weren't supposed to use that one.' He glared at Pistol and Nym. Nym simply rolled her eyes with an affectation of boredom, while the Ogre chewed his lip and gazed at the floor.

'We were only supposed to get a few supplies from here,' Bobby continued. 'We'd have offered to do some manual labour or something in return, although people often help us out for free when we tell them how important the task ahead of us is.'

Eric scoffed. 'Going town to town sweet talking your way into freebies… that's an important task, now?'

'That's not what we do,' Bobby replied. 'It's how we get by, but it's not what we're working towards.'

'What are you working towards?' Uni asked, quietly.

'Can't you guys all feel it?' Bobby asked the others. 'There's something big ahead of us – a war. There's a voice out there that calls to me. Somebody out there needs our help… needs _my_ help. And I'm not gonna let 'em down. I have to make sure there's a world out there for little kids to grow up in.' He paused, briefly. 'So, that's why I'm building an army.'

Sheila's eyes widened. 'An _army_? Bobby, what are you talking about?'

'Field Marshall Bobby, huh?' grinned Eric.

'Pretty much,' Bobby replied.

'And, where is this awe-inspiring army of yours?'

'Parking up,' answered Bobby, simply.

'Huh?'

The door swung open and a shabbily flamboyant masked man strode into the tavern.

'What is this?' demanded the man in a Gallic accent so thick that it could only possibly be assumed. 'I demand to know! Honour must be satisfied.'

'Hey, LeFroux,' Bobby greeted. 'You remember my friends…?'

'We send you to get food,' continued LeFroux over him, 'we hide the velocipatory transportation device…'

'The what?' asked Sheila from the corner of her mouth.

'The truck,' Bobby replied. 'Grey's a great inventor, but he's crap at thinking up names.'

'…we even begin to pitch our tents, and where is our dinner, Barbarian? Where? You are all here with your chitting and chatting and LeFroux, he starve to death!'

'There's a dozen of you,' said Rosa, 'aren't there?'

Bobby blinked at her, confused. 'Including me, yes.'

Rosa nodded, calmly. 'I made enough food for all of you.'

'How did she…?' began Nym.

'She's a Soothsayer,' Hank explained.

'You are the Ogre, I take it?' Rosa patted Pistol on the shoulder.

'Only on me Mam's side,' muttered Pistol.

'I made double helpings for you,' Rosa told him, kindly, sweeping off towards the stove.

Pistol smiled. 'She's good.'

'Why don't you guys tell the others to come in for dinner once the camp's been pitched,' suggested the Barbarian. 'I think I've still got some catching up to do here.'

LeFroux grunted in agreement. 'And what shall we do about the others?'

'Others? What others?'

'There is a party walking towards the town,' LeFroux explained. 'Grey saw them through his ocular lens magnification device. Only five of them; three women, one old man and a Wizard. They should reach us within ten minutes. I say we fight them!'

'LeFroux, that's your answer to everything…'

'It sounds like it's just Presto and the others,' Sheila interjected. 'I'm glad they made it OK.'

'You guys found some allies too?' Bobby asked.

'Yeah.' Eric grinned. 'And you'll never guess who we got.'

'Wait,' snapped Percy, 'There's _more_ coming? Are we feeding an army here?'

'A small army,' Rosa smiled from the stove, 'but an army nonetheless. The five who are approaching are the last who will need shelter here. I provided for everybody.'

Percy shot a sideways glance at his wife. 'I _thought_ you were peeling an awful lot of vegetables.'

The bandits began to shuffle out of the tavern to join the rest of their party outside. Nym nodded at the cot as she passed it.

'Sweet babies,' she told Rosa. 'They yours?'

'One is,' admitted the Soothsayer.

'Oh?' Nym took another hard look at the smaller sleeping baby, then stared at Sheila. '_Oh_. I see.'

'What?' asked Pistol, from half way out of the door.

Nym pushed him through, whispering some amusing secret to him as she went.

Sheila sprang to her feet. 'Hey! Hey, they must think that…' she trailed off.

'What?' asked Bobby. 'What's this about babies?'

'Um.' Sheila steeled herself, exchanging glances with the rest of the group. She took a deep breath and walked over to the cot. 'Bob, there's something you need to know…' She picked up the sleeping newborn and showed her to Bobby. 'Somebody you aughtta meet.'

Bobby blanched. 'Oh my _God_! You had a baby!'

'She isn't mine, Bob…'

'Well, of course she's yours! Look at her – she's the spitting image of you.'

'I'm not her mother,' Sheila replied. She held the baby out towards Bobby. 'I'm her aunt.'

Bobby's brow furrowed. 'What? She's not… she can't be…'

'The woman who gave us shelter just over nine months ago,' Uni told the Barbarian quietly. 'Lilac.'

Bobby rubbed his face and sat down again, shakily. 'But that was just one time. Ships that pass in the night…'

'Once is enough,' Diana added.

'Can't be mine…' Bobby breathed. He stared at the baby again. 'Oh God. She _is_, though, isn't she?' He paused. 'Where's Lilac? Why didn't she get word to me? Where…' He craned his head around the tavern. 'Is she even _here_? She hasn't abandoned the poor kid, has she…?'

The others exchanged more glances. Hank and Sheila took seats next to him.

'I'm sorry, Bob,' Hank muttered. 'Lilac died.'

Bobby closed his eyes fast. 'When? How?'

'Kosar,' Hank replied. 'He didn't even know that he'd done it. He just split the ground under her feet and she fell. Happened only a few hours ago.'

'Poor Lilac,' Bobby sighed. 'What a crappy excuse for a life she had.' He frowned up at Hank. 'Why was she even with you? Why was she putting herself in danger with a tiny baby to look after?'

'She wanted to find you,' Sheila replied. 'She wanted to show you your daughter.'

Hank cast his gaze down. 'I talked her into it.'

'Lilac wasn't dumb,' Bobby added. 'She wouldn't do anything that she didn't want to do. This isn't your doing, Hank.' He sighed again. 'It's mine.'

'You didn't even know.'

'That doesn't matter,' Bobby resolved. 'She died trying to give me the opportunity to know my daughter.' He held his arms out toward Sheila. 'Let me hold her.'

Sheila gently passed the baby over to Bobby, who cradled her close to his chest.

'It's you,' murmured Bobby to the newborn, 'isn't it? The voice crying out in the night – the lost little kid. It was you all along. Well, I'm gonna take good care of you, OK?'

'Bob,' Sheila reminded him, 'you're only seventeen…'

'So?' Bobby shrugged.

'He took good care of me when I was a baby,' Uni added, 'and he was only a child. You'll be a wonderful father to her, Bob.'

Bobby smiled. 'What's the little tyke's name, anyway?'

'Bluebell.'

Bobby twisted his face a little, trying desperately to mask his disappointment. 'Bluebell. Huh.'

'Dorky name for a kid with a dorky dad,' Eric grinned.

'Shut up, Eric,' warned Bobby. 'When _you_ have a kid, you give it whatever name you want, but don't go round makin'…'

'Oh,' interrupted Eric, breezily, 'I will. Sooner than you think, kiddo.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

Eric put his arm around an irritable Diana's shoulders. 'It means you're not the only one whose tadpoles can swim, Bob. You're looking at one heck of a knocked-up Acrobat.'

'Oh,' replied Bobby, absently. 'So you guys are sleeping together again. Thought you probably would be by now.'

'And _how_,' added Eric.

Diana removed the Cavalier's arm from her shoulders, hotly. 'Although, at the rate you're going right now, Mister, we're not likely to be doing that again for a long, long while.'

'What? What did I say?'

'Congratulations, Diana,' added Bobby, 'although you _have_ to be completely nuts.'

Diana rolled her eyes. 'Tell me about it.'

The door to the Inn banged open again and Nym strode back inside, followed by Pistol, LeFroux and the rest of the gang.

'So what's for tea, then?' demanded the bandit as she clomped muddy boots across the floor. 'Oh, and you'd better set a few more places – that other lot are just arriving.'

The bandits' engineer darted in front of Nym quickly, with a faint nod of acknowledgement towards Hank and the others.

'Hey there, Grey,' Hank greeted. 'Still inventing stuff, huh?'

'It's a living,' murmured Grey modestly as he pulled a chair out for Nym.

Rather than scoffing at Grey contemptuously, Nym settled herself in the offered chair with a quiet 'cheers, Love.'

Sheila and Hank exchanged glances before turning their wordless attention on to Bobby for an explanation of Nym's uncharacteristic good manners.

'They're an item,' Bobby mouthed, silently.

'For real?' mouthed Hank in reply.

Bobby nodded. 'Big time,' he mouthed.

Hank mouthed a thoughtful 'oh', while Sheila visibly relaxed and allowed herself a wide, smug smile.

'Hey,' called another voice from the door, 'looks like the gang's all here. And then some.'

Bobby turned his head towards the doorway, where Presto stood, flanked by people who looked suspiciously like… Bobby's breath caught in the back of his throat… Zandora, Ayeisha, Ramhoud and… the Barbarian's face fell, momentarily. Was that… _Varla_? Nah, couldn't be. She was long dead.

Bobby got to his feet, handing Bluebell swiftly over to Sheila. 'Presto? Boy, am I glad to see you!'

He squeezed the Wizard's shoulders tightly. Presto coughed out as much of a laugh as the forceful hug would allow him.

'Feeling's mutual, Bob. You brought friends, I see.'

'Yeah.' Bobby released Presto and nodded hopefully at the Wizard's companions. 'Looks like you did, too. Is… is that…'

'I flatter myself that we hardly need to be introduced a second time,' grinned the older man at Presto's side, with a familiar Arabic-sounding twang.

'I knew it,' beamed Bobby, greeting the others. 'Where did you find these guys?' Without thinking, he shook Varla's hand as part of his frenzy of salutations. It took him a second to realise whose hand it was he was holding. As soon as he did, he froze.

'You're supposed to be dead.'

'But she's not,' Presto replied. 'It's a long story. She's here to help.'

Bobby shook his head. 'She sold us out. And now she comes crawling back to us and…'

'Presto knows what he's doing,' Hank added, quietly.

'Does he?'

Hank frowned at Presto. 'Bob doesn't know, either?'

Bobby rolled his eyes, despairingly. 'Oh God, there's a whole freaking _world_ of stuff it turns out I don't know today! What else could there possibly be to add to the pile…? What – you've been in secret communication with our mysterious jerkwad of a new DM all along and haven't been telling us, or something? Or maybe even…' Bobby trailed off, staring at Presto. 'You weren't even surprised to see me, were you? You knew I was going to be here.' He paused again. 'All those private little chats with Venger… all that time I thought it was _him_ giving information to _you_. Tell me it's not you. Tell me you're not the one who's put all of us through this.'

'I had no choice,' Presto told him softly.

Bobby turned away, his fingers clawed in his short fringe. 'God _dammit_! Why didn't you tell us before, Presto? Why didn't you at least let us know it was you calling the shots?'

'I've never "called the shots",' Presto replied, 'believe me. And I only kept it secret to protect you…'

'So you didn't trust me either,' Bobby spat, 'just like Uni didn't trust me enough to talk with me…' a new thought struck him. 'I bet you even knew about the baby.'

'From the moment she was conceived,' admitted Presto.

'And you decided not to tell me about her, either?'

Presto nodded, sadly. 'I advised her mother never to mention that you were Bluebell's father. It was only for her protection…'

'Why is it that every time I hear about some new lie, some new bit of information that royally sucks, it's always been in the name of "protection"?'

'If Lilac had followed my instruction,' Presto replied, 'she wouldn't have been killed today, and your newborn baby wouldn't have found herself at the edge of the biggest battle we've ever fought.'

Bobby had no response to that. He was aware, as he stared at Presto, that the Inn had fallen silent. All eyes were on his friend – his Dungeon Master.

'We're walking into monumental danger here,' Presto added, softly. 'We have done all our lives. Every one of us here today has chosen this path – it might not seem that way to some of us, but we have. And we're all aware of what it is that we're dealing with. This isn't like Venger. Venger was a mortal man who was twisted by the darkness. Even in the worst times, he had a sense of honour. He could be negotiated with – reasoned with. Furnus is fire. You can't negotiate with that. It exists to consume and destroy everything that it touches. And then, we have to consider what lurks behind Furnus. No Name isn't just fire and brimstone. No Name is a storm of pure evil, and if you think the Devil discriminates…' he frowned, as though to himself. 'Nobody's safe from Him. Not the innocent, not the helpless, nobody. That's what we're walking towards, Bob. That's what we'll be coming up against, sooner than you think. Your daughter shouldn't be here.' He laid a hand on Bobby's shoulder. 'I'm not sorry for lying to you, or for coercing Lilac into silence. I'm sorry that I wasn't forceful _enough_. I wasn't able to protect her.'

A soft mutter went up amongst the bandits at the far table.

'You don't need to protect her,' Bobby replied. 'That's my job. I'm her father.'

'At the expense of protecting anyone else?' Presto asked. 'Your new friends? Your old friends? Sheila? Uni…?'

'If he has to,' piped Uni from a corner. 'It's his prerogative. We can take care of ourselves.'

Presto nodded again, thoughtfully. 'As long as you all understand.'

'I think it's a little late to start handing out "you must be at least this suicidal to take part in this battle" signs, Presto old pal,' added Eric. 'We're all here now. I don't think any of us are gonna turn back – we've come too far to get here.'

There was a generic noise of agreement from the assembly in the Inn. Presto smiled, faintly.

'You certainly have.' He paused, and switched his attention to Hank. 'So, what now?'

Hank blinked, startled, and gruffly cleared his throat as the focus of the gathered crowd turned to him.

'It'll be getting dark in a few hours,' replied the Ranger. 'It's probably the best idea for us all to rest up here for the night.' He paused. 'I mean… these things are usually done at dawn, aren't they?'

The bandits murmured another agreement.

'Hank is right,' cried an enthusiastic voice.

Bobby turned in time to see Ramhoud leaping onto a chair with all of his usual gusto. The great King was only prevented from stepping up onto the table by the Innkeeper's peevish tutting and glaring at his muddy boots.

'Apologies,' muttered Ramhoud, getting back down onto the floor. 'Hank is right,' he tried again. 'Let us gather our strength. For tomorrow, my friends… my allies… my children… tomorrow when the suns rise, we are going to war!'

An almighty cheer rose up from the crowd in the tavern. Only Bobby O'Brien was close enough to the Unicorn to hear her low whisper as the cacophony rang out.

'Back to where it all began,' breathed Uni. 'Back to where it all will end.'


	2. Chapter 2

ENDGAME

-x-

Two

-x-

'Look at that.'

Night had fallen, and all around the Inn were dotted the tents of LeFroux's gang, lit from the inside with Grey's Chemically Charged Electrical Lighting Devices. From the window of the top room of the Inn, it looked as though they were high above a sea of paper lanterns.

Sheila rested her head on Presto's shoulder. 'It even _looks_ like the night before a battle. What was that movie Diana made us watch with the campsite and the sword fighting…? Had some old British guy in it…?'

'Henry the Fifth,' Diana informed her from the bed at the other end of the room. 'And I'll have you know that "old British guy" was Laurence Olivier…'

'I thought he was the King…?'

Diana sighed. 'He was _playing_ the King. Good God, woman.'

'We got a King of our own,' Sheila added, brightly. 'Are Kings particularly good in battle?'

'Depends which King,' Presto replied. 'I'm sure glad Ramhoud's on our side, though.'

'Did they win in that movie?' Sheila asked. 'I think I might have fallen asleep before the end.'

'Henry won Agincourt,' Diana told her. 'Despite the English being horribly outnumbered…'

'Sounds like us so far…'

'There was a cost, though,' Diana added. 'Innocents were slain, and Henry's old friends died.'

'Huh,' Sheila frowned. 'I didn't need to hear _that_.'

'It's only a play,' Diana reminded her, settling back down into bed. 'But Henry the Fifth really did win Agincourt, against the odds.'

'OK,' piped Eric, 'I have a question to add. What the Hell are you guys doing in our bedroom? Are you gonna talk about Ye Olde Battles all night long or are you gonna get out of here and let us get some shuteye?'

Sheila turned away from the window. 'Seriously – how can you guys even think about sleeping tonight?'

'I'm pregnant,' Diana replied. 'Puking and sleeping's pretty much all I do right now.'

'And I'm monumentally lazy,' Eric added with a proud smile. 'Now, scat!'

-x-

Hank shared an awkward half-smile of acknowledgement with Bobby as he narrowly avoided colliding with the Barbarian in the doorway.

Hank nodded over at the lit tents. 'Not spending tonight with your people, then?'

Bobby glanced at the tents. 'I _am_ spending the night with my people. I'll be in here with you guys.'

'Well, that's good to know. I think Rosa was setting up a room for you and Bluebell…'

'I talked to her,' Bobby replied. 'Bluebell was sleeping so happily with the other baby in Rosa and Percy's room, it seemed a shame to wake her. And Rosa's agreed to feed her if she's hungry in the night. Ramhoud and Ayeisha can have my room. I want to spend tonight down here with Uni.

'I think she'd like that.'

'_I_'d like that,' Bobby added. 'I've missed her.' He paused. 'How about you?'

'I missed her too. All of 'em…'

'No,' clarified Bobby, 'I mean, sleep wise.'

Hank shrugged with a sigh. 'Haven't really thought about that.'

Bobby grinned with his old air of affected bravado. 'Sleep when you're dead, right?'

Hank matched his smile. 'Pretty soon, in other words.'

There was an awkward pause, broken by both young men trying to speak at once.

'Listen…' Hank began, but broke off again, allowing Bobby to complete his sentence.

'I'm so sorry about what happened,' admitted the Barbarian. 'The fight and all, I mean.'

'That wasn't a fight,' Hank replied. 'You handed my ass to me. And I deserved it. I'm the one who owes you an apology.'

'It was me who tipped you over the edge,' Bobby added, guiltily.

'I walked to the edge all by myself,' Hank assured him, 'and then I stood there, practically begging one of you guys to give me that final nudge. I let you down – all of you.'

'But you've come back from that,' Bobby prompted. 'Right?'

Hank nodded. 'You bet your butt.'

Bobby smiled again, riding another uncomfortable pause. After a moment he jerked his thumb in the direction of the nest that had been made up for the Unicorn in the scullery.

'Gonna hit the hay, if you don't mind.'

'Sure', Hank replied. 'You're one of the few people I know who actually means that phrase literally.'

Bobby wandered off towards the scullery, leaving Hank alone in the hall. He could hear soft voices issuing from upstairs. Silently, he crept to the bottom of the stairs and stood, listening to them. From somewhere above, he could make out Rosa cooing to either one or both of the babies; Eric and Diana sleepily murmuring a half-hearted argument at one another; Ramhoud and Ayeisha quietly chanting together in a strange language – Hank guessed that they were praying – and, from what sounded like directly above, Presto and Sheila chatting about old Earth battles. Hank frowned slightly. Were… were they sharing a room that night? Now that he came to think about it, hadn't somebody mentioned that they had shared a two-bedroom house with Eric and Diana for the months he'd been away…? How had the sleeping arrangements worked there, exactly?

In fact…

Now he came to think about it more…

They _had_ seemed very close lately.

His frown deepened. He stepped away from the foot of the stairs and sat down heavily in a nearby chair.

Not just lately. Not when he thought about it. Suddenly, his memory was flooded with moments when he'd caught Presto gazing at Sheila for a little too long, or smiling at her perhaps a little too fondly. It had barely registered with him at the time, for all his self-centredness and arrogance. But that had been back when he'd assumed that he could go on treating Sheila like crap and she'd carry on taking it. Perhaps all that time he'd just been pushing her into somebody else's arms – somebody gentler and quieter… and, following Hank's fall and Presto's rise to the status of Dungeon Master, somebody far more powerful than he. A long time ago, back in Swinville, the spectre of the Black Knight had warned him that he would be usurped. He had suspected Eric at the time – mouthy, cocksure, funny Eric – but it hadn't been Eric who had taken over as the group's leader. Presto, in his quiet, unassuming way, had acquired that position. Who was to say that he hadn't used the same soft approach to obtain Sheila's heart as well?

Hank sighed deeply.

If that was the case, what was he going to do? Presto was a great guy – the kind of guy Sheila deserved. He'd had his chance to prove that he deserved her affections and he'd royally blown that. She deserved respect. She deserved kindness. She deserved to be loved.

Hank loved her. Of course, he loved her. It had always been her, all his life. It hadn't been until he'd lost her that he'd truly understood how much she meant to him. And now, he understood something else. He loved her too much to crave possession over her. He just wanted her to be happy. And, perhaps, that would mean having to accept that somebody else was better for her than he was.

He sighed again, and closed his remaining eye.

It was over. It was all over, now. There was nothing left to do but to wait for the inevitable.

-x-

The call was made for the slumbering army to wake up just as the first light from the suns was beginning to tinge the sky dark blue. Hank was sure that he'd slept, although he couldn't say he was exactly rested. He got up and joined the short queue for the water pump. He was tapped on the back as he waited. He turned to see Nym's perpetually unkempt face grinning up at him.

'Mornin', she greeted. 'Just.'

'Hey, Nym.' Hank gave a cursory glance about for Grey. 'Where's your boyfriend?'

'Fiancé,' Nym corrected him. 'After a fashion, at least. We just haven't been able to corner a Priest and bribe or bully him into wedding us on the spot yet.' She pulled a leather strap from the collar of her tunic, on which sparkled a heavy, jewelled ring, far too large for any of her fingers.

'Nice ring.'

'Yeah, I thought so too.' Nym sniffed. 'Had to nick it myself, of course. Grey's not big on looting.' She popped the ring back inside her clothes. 'To answer your question, he's popped back to one of our hideouts for a while.'

'Not a fighter either, then?'

'Oh,' Nym assured him, 'he's fierce. Fierce as you'd expect someone taking me on as a Missus to be. But he's clever, as well… I think I might have mentioned that before. He's been working on a couple of projects lately, and he's nipped back to get them.'

'I see.' Hank paused as the queue for the pump shuffled forwards a little. 'Do you think we've got a chance, Nym?'

'What, you and me?' Nym raised an eyebrow. 'I just showed you my engagement ring – I don't bloody think so, Mister…'

'I meant, our side. This battle. Think we can win?'

'How should I know?' Nym replied. 'I thought you were the leader.'

'I'm not sure. I'm not sure what that even means any more.'

'Well, I'm glad you're instilling such confidence amongst the troops on this day of days,' Nym retorted, ducking around him to steal his turn at the water pump. 'Tell you what,' she added, washing her face, 'even if I am a gonner today, I think I'm all right with that.'

'You're so young,' Hank sighed. 'You've got your whole life still ahead of you – everyone here does.'

'I came from a ramshackle orphanage in a swamp on the outskirts of the corrupted Kingdom of Zinn,' Nym reminded him. 'I was alone and penniless. Now look at me – free as a bird, roaming the big wide Realm, with my little gang and the love of my life. Death could be just around the corner for any one of us, at any time, and you can't do anything about that. But the bit that comes before that – the bit called "living"… it's up to us to make that count as much as we possibly can.'

She smiled brightly, stepping away from the pump. 'Enjoy your morning wash, Hank.'

-x-

Dawn was just breaking as the group left the Inn – munching on rations of bread and cheese that the Innkeeper and his wife had left for them before they had bundled up their baby and fled. Presto found that he didn't need to guide the way – Ramhoud, Zandora and Uni all seemed to know where they were going already. Presto fell back a little into the crocodile of people and found himself just behind Eric and Diana who were, characteristically, arguing.

'I'm telling you,' Diana grumbled, 'I feel fine now. The sickness comes and goes, but Presto said he might be able to help with that.' She looked over her shoulder. 'Didn't you, Presto?'

Presto gave them both a small smile. 'Can't have you throwing up everything you eat. It's a really simple spell – perfectly safe.'

Eric glared at him. '_Safe_? Thanks to you, Presto, this maniac now thinks she's fit to fight today.' The Cavalier turned back to Diana. 'It's too dangerous.'

'Well, duh,' Diana snapped, 'it's a battlefield. Just because I got a bean in my belly doesn't stop me from being a better fighter than half the people here. I'm not about to stand at the sidelines and watch my best friends get killed without trying to do anything about it!'

'And what if something happens to you or the baby?' Eric asked.

'What if something happens to any of us,' Diana countered, 'at any time? What if we all get hit by a bus on our way here?'

'There aren't any buses here!'

'You know what I meant!' Diana turned back to Presto. 'Tell him, Presto.'

'Diana's one of us,' Presto replied, quietly. 'She was shaped to be a warrior as much as any of us were…'

'She's the mother of my child!'

'That doesn't change who she is,' Presto murmured, 'or _what_ she is. If you want to fight, Diana… God knows, we could do with your help.'

'Told you,' Diana gloated.

'However,' Presto added, 'I think you should avoid transmogrification while you're pregnant, Diana. It's played havoc with your body as it is – I don't know if it would harm the baby.'

'But I _like_ turning into a swan,' Diana grumbled. 'I like how the surprise of it throws people off…'

'Well,' Presto told her, 'you're just gonna have to rely on being a super agile athlete with lickety speed, a demon of a right hook and a magical Weapon of Power. I think you've still got an advantage over the average schmo there.'

From the expressions of his two friends he could see that he hadn't made either of them particularly happy with his suggestions. At least, he consoled himself, they weren't arguing with one another any more.

Just as they turned away from him, he felt a firm grip on his shoulder. He looked across and saw a purposeful looking Hank.

'Hey,' he mumbled.

'Presto,' greeted Hank.

There was an awkward pause.

Presto studied Hank's expression. 'You wanna ask me something, Hank, go ahead and ask it. No secrets here any more. Remember?'

Hank sighed and nodded towards the front of the group where Sheila walked alongside her brother. 'You love her. Don't you?'

Months ago, Presto would have nervously denied it and changed the subject. But those days, and that Presto, were long gone now.

'Yes, I do.'

'How long for?'

'Who can say? Years, maybe. She found out the night you left us.'

'You share bedrooms.'

'That's true,' replied Presto. 'As friends.' He looked Hank square in the eye. 'She loves me as a friend. We keep each other company. That's all. That's all it ever has been, or ever will be.'

'How come?' Hank asked. 'You're so good for her…'

'Because she's in love with _you_, you lucky son of a bitch,' Presto replied with a slight smile. 'It's always been you, and it always will.'

'But I screwed up,' Hank breathed, 'I hurt her so bad…'

'But you managed not to break her,' Presto replied. 'You didn't destroy her compassion or her forgiveness. She's stronger than you are.' Presto paused. 'That said; if you ever hurt her again…'

'Believe me. I've learnt my lesson.'

'And I'm _not_ "good for her",' Presto added, faintly.

'What?'

Presto stared at the back of Sheila's head, far in front. 'I'm Dungeon Master. I'm not particularly good for anybody.'

'Are you talking about that baby?' asked an anxious female voice from behind them.

Presto turned and saw Varla.

Varla. Great. Because the affairs of his heart weren't fraught and complicated enough already.

Varla indicated to the O'Briens in front. Indeed, Bobby was still carrying the newborn with him.

'He should have left the child at the Inn.'

'On her own?' asked Hank, incredulously.

'It's safer than where we're going!' Varla continued to address Presto. 'He mustn't take that little thing into battle. And the only person I'm aware of who can fight effectively at a safe distance from the battlefield is…' She trailed off.

She didn't need to finish her sentence. Presto knew what it was she was suggesting. He took Varla by the wrist and pulled her onward through the throng until they reached those at the front.

Both O'Brien siblings greeted him with an overly cheerful 'Hey, Presto', studiously ignoring the Illusionist still in his grasp.

'Bobby,' Presto told the Barbarian as levelly as he could, 'give the baby to Varla.'

Bobby almost stopped walking for a moment, but was pushed onwards by a couple of Bandits.

'Say, _what_?!?'

'You're not gonna take that kid into battle,' Presto added. 'You have the choice not to fight, of course…'

'No way,' Bobby replied. 'I'm takin' the stand with the rest of you. You need me.'

'Me too,' interjected Sheila.

'There's no point in me going into the melee,' Varla told them, 'I'm much better at misdirecting our enemies from a hidden vantage point.'

'How convenient for you,' Sheila grunted.

'I can keep the child safe,' added Varla.

Bobby shook his head. 'After everything she did to us, Presto. After selling us out like that, you really expect me to trust her with my daughter?'

'What if she's still on Furnus' side?' Sheila added. 'What if she's a spy?'

'She's not,' asserted Presto.

'You were wrong about her before,' Bobby reminded him.

'That was a long time ago. I'm right about this.'

'I'm sorry, Presto,' Bobby replied, 'it isn't gonna happen.'

'Yes it is,' Uni announced, suddenly.

'What?'

'You'll do whatever Presto tells you is best, Bobby Barbarian.'

Bobby blinked at the Unicorn. 'Years of silence and suddenly you're the world's bossiest mythical creature?'

'I only speak when it's important, Bobby,' replied Uni, 'and it's important that you trust Presto.'

'But…'

'He's your Dungeon Master. That means something. I trust him with my life. So should you.'

'But this is my daughter…'

Uni turned her head to Presto. 'Will his daughter be safe with Varla, Presto?'

Presto gazed hard into Varla's eyes for a moment – and into her heart.

'Yes.'

Uni turned back to Bobby. 'Then, she'll be safe.'

'Bob, I'm not exactly Varla's biggest fan myself right now,' Sheila added, 'but I do trust Presto's judgement. Like Uni says – he's the Dungeon Master. We should all start treating him like we treated the last one.'

'We'll be at our destination before you know it,' Presto told Bobby, softly. 'Varla will be splitting off from our group very soon to find a good hiding place. You should do this now, if you're going to do it at all.'

Bobby stared at Presto, darting his gaze occasionally towards Varla, then Sheila and Uni. After a long pause, he sighed heavily, kissing his tiny daughter on the brow.

'She'll need to be fed in about ten minutes,' Bobby murmured, unhappily. He pulled a knapsack from his shoulder. 'There's fresh milk in a bottle in the bag, as well as some rags in case she poops.'

Varla took the bag then the baby from Bobby. 'She'll be safe,' the Illusionist reiterated. 'I won't let our enemy find us.'

'You'd better be right, Presto,' Bobby breathed.

Presto put his hand on Bobby's shoulder as they watched Varla split away from the crocodile and hurry off with the child.

'You've given her the best chance you possibly could,' Presto told the Barbarian, 'under the circumstances.'

Bobby conceded a half-smile. 'Think I preferred the old DM's riddles to your plain talk. The easier the stuff you have to say is to understand, the scarier it gets.'

They passed a large boulder that had been blocking their view, and suddenly a vast canyon came into their sights.

'Recognise this place?' Uni asked, flatly.

Sheila screwed up her eyes, remembering. 'Yeah… we've been here before, too.'

'This is where we met,' Uni added, the dullness to her tone tinged with melancholy.

'This is where we came in,' recalled Bobby. 'The first time, I mean.'

'I'd been separated from my herd,' Uni added. 'Wandered into a canyon where the dragons used to gather… found myself caught in the crossfire between Tiamat and Venger…'

'Speak of the Devils…' Bobby muttered, nodding at two shapes approaching their group from the southwest; one large and lumbering, with writhing heads and damaged stumps – the other a sleek, bat-winged figure.

'You saved me that day,' Uni reminded Bobby, 'and so many times after that.'

'Are you always this maudlin?' Bobby asked the Unicorn.

'Not always,' said Uni, quietly, 'not always. But there's something very final about this suns-rise, don't you think? Something very complete about us finding ourselves back here. I was a different creature that day when we first met… I suppose, we all were. Even then, my kind were dying out, but now I'm the only one left.' She sighed. 'The last Unicorn standing.'

'We _can_ do this, you know,' Presto told Uni. 'We can face down Furnus and win. I wouldn't take you into an impossible fight.'

'But we could lose too,' added Sheila, glumly. 'Right?'

'The dream I've been having,' Uni continued. 'I think I understand what it means, now – the sapling and the egg.'

'Aren't those good things?' Sheila asked. 'Don't they stand for Spring… rebirth and renewal?'

'There has to be a Winter before the Spring,' Uni replied. 'There has to be death before rebirth.'

'Do I have to get you a little violin to accompany these sad speeches?' asked Bobby.

Uni snorted a soft, equine laugh. 'Don't mind me. I'm just thinking out loud.'

Ahead of them, Ramhoud held up a hand as a signal for the tiny army to stop. The crocodile of fighters came to a patchy halt, forming a loose cluster as the valley spread beneath them. The hushed group could hear the faint grunt and clatter of Orcs going about their early morning routines in the canyon below

'Any closer, and we'll be on top of them,' Ramhoud told the assembled party, quietly.

There was a pause.

'Well,' Eric sighed, resolutely, 'what are we waiting for? We take 'em by surprise now, right? I mean, they don't exactly sound prepared.'

'We'd have the benefit of surprise for a short while,' Zandora told him, 'but we'll still be hugely outnumbered. Besides which, this canyon is a very weak spot between dimensions. That's part of the reason that you fell into our world here in the first place. At any moment, Furnus might open a portal to call forth reinforcements.'

'You mean, those fiery zombies?' worried Sheila.

'And Fire Dragons,' Venger added, drawing close enough to the party to be able to join in with the discussion. 'Any creature from her foul world could fall through a portal, should she wish.'

Presto nodded at Venger. 'Thank you for finding Tiamat, Venger. And Tiamat; you have my gratitude for…'

'I am not here for your benefit,' Tiamat hissed. 'Furnus is my enemy. She earned my wrath long before she injured me.' The blind Dragon Queen nodded one of her good heads at the canyon beyond. 'Dragons used to roam free in this valley. I will be certain that they do so again.'

Diana began to stretch out her limbs in anticipation. 'Well, looks like the gang's all here…'

'Not quite,' Hank interrupted. He turned to Nym. 'Where's that fiancé of yours with his "secret weapon"?'

'_Two_ secret weapons, as a matter of fact,' Nym replied. She pointed upwards at a large, low cloud sailing towards them. 'And, I think this might be him now.'

'His secret weapon is to turn into a cloud?' Eric asked.

Despite the Cavalier's incredulity, however, the cloud was, in fact, beginning to descend, and, before a minute had passed, sat heavily down on the ground close to them with a great rush of wind. As the party watched, the cloud swiftly dissipated, revealing two very odd machines.

Presto had seen contraptions a little like these before; in sketches drafted by the early aeronautical inventors. They were, essentially, flying machines, with propellers run off modified versions of the internal combustion engine that Grey had somehow, miraculously, stumbled upon when creating his giant land vehicle. The flying machines were tiny and rickety in appearance, but were obviously capable of remaining airborne for some time.

Grey popped his cheery face from the interior of one of the cramped contraptions, wiping soot from his goggles.

'That Illusionist of yours is doing a good job of it already,' he chirped as a couple of Bandits who had been lugging engine fuel with them from the camp hurried forward to refill the flying machines. 'Orcs would have spotted us for certain if it weren't for her cloud cover.'

'Helicopters?' Eric gaped. 'We got Goddam _Choppers_?' For the first time that day, the Cavalier grinned. 'OK, even I have to admit, that's pretty sweet.'

'Told you he was clever,' added Nym, slinging a proud arm around Grey.

Grey patted his own flying machine. 'Only managed to get an auto-reloading-gunpowder-propelled-pellet-shooting-turret installed into one of them, given the time I had…'

'_Machine guns_?' Eric yelped in admiration.

Diana nudged the Cavalier. 'Tongue in, Jack D. Ripper.'

'But _machine guns_,' Eric reiterated, 'on _helicopters_. In this stupid world! All he needs now is a cassette of "Ride Of The Valkyries" and we're set!'

'I'll need,' Grey continued over them, 'a crack shot with a bow and arrow to fly the other.'

One by one, all heads in the group turned to Hank.

'Sounds like your cue, Deadeye,' Eric announced.

Hank shook his head. 'I lost an eye, remember? My aim isn't what it used to be.'

'Your aim is fine,' Zandora told him. 'You just have to believe in your abilities.'

'But I'm not leaving you guys!'

'You won't be leaving us,' said Sheila, determinedly. 'You'll just be fighting with us from the best position available.'

'Yeah, you're no good to us dead, One-Eye,' added Eric, 'and if you think I'm standin' round shielding you every time you have to stop and draw back your Bow, you've got another thing coming.'

'You'd be more use picking our enemies off from up there where you can actually see what's going on,' Uni told him.

Hank drew breath to argue further, but exhaled in defeat when he caught sight of Presto's expression. 'Fine.'

Grey nodded. 'Come on, then. I'll have to show you how to fly one of these things right now. We'll aim to take off as soon as the others advance into the canyon.'

Hank took a step towards Grey, then faltered, turning back to the group.

'If I don't make it… or any of you guys don't make it…'

'We know,' Bobby told him, with a soft smile.

'It's been a pleasure,' chipped in Eric, 'ya big jerk.'

Hank returned their friendly smiles. 'Back atcha.'

At the flying machine, Nym gave Grey a quick squeeze of the arm and a kiss to the cheek, whispering words of encouragement in his ear. Just as Hank broke away from the group again, Sheila ran forward and caught the Ranger's elbow. Wordlessly, she reached up and kissed him on the lips.

Presto looked down at the ground for a moment, and by the time he gazed back up again, Hank was by the flying machines with Grey and Sheila and Nym were rejoining the rest of the group.

'Well,' announced Presto as everybody took their places, 'I guess there's nothing else for us to wait for now.'

He heard the sound of dozens of weapons being drawn – mostly swords, axes and maces - the hum of magic only issuing from the few Weapons of Power. Slowly, Presto began to walk towards the edge of the canyon, feeling the magical energy crackling through his hands and arms.

'We fight this dawn for our world,' said Ramhoud, just loud enough for all of the group to hear. 'Not just this world, but every world that evil such as Furnus can corrupt.'

'It ends today,' Presto added. 'One way or another, it ends today.'

Right before the precipice, he closed his eyes. He felt a silent, inward surge, like a great, collected inhalation of breath.

Somebody shouted "Charge" – it could have been Ramhoud, or LeFroux, or Venger, or even Presto himself. For a moment, Presto didn't know. He only knew that the charge had begun. His eyes remained closed as he ran, as though part of one mighty, razor-toothed pouncing beast, down the steep incline towards the surprised army of Furnus' allies. He knew when they were upon the enemy. He drew his fists up over his head, and opened his eyes to a screaming flurry of flying steel and blood.


	3. Chapter 3

ENDGAME

-x-

Three

-x-

All Hell had broken out in the valley. The assembled Orcs vastly outnumbered the small attacking party, but struggled in their surprise to find their weapons and organise themselves before the band of allies hit. The first blows were all from the charging group. Horrible squeals went up as swords, knives and blunt weapons struck Orc flesh. Presto the Dungeon Master – magical energy bristling through his whole body – pushed his way through amongst the enemy and then brought his fists that had been held over his head down again hard, smashing a great ball of energy into the ground, creating a shockwave which sent Orcs tumbling in every direction. A second great crash was heard as the Barbarian's club hit the sheer wall of rock at the edge of the valley, crushing several Orcs with the resulting rockslide.

Amid the cacophony, Kosar got smoothly to his feet, sending his birds flurrying about him. Clutching the Spear of Rameh, he smiled.

'About time.'

-x-

Above the chasm, Hank found himself shivering for the first time that chilly morning. Even though the engine of the tiny, rickety Flying Machine he was sitting in was rumbling away, he could still hear the carnage beyond.

'You think it's cold down here?' Grey grinned, fiercely winding a contraption at the back of Hank's machine. 'Wait 'til you get her airborne!' The inventor stopped winding and wiped his face. 'Keep a foot on that pedal at all times,' he ordered, pointing to a small pedal on the floor, 'and never let go of the steering beam.'

'But I need both hands to shoot,' Hank replied.

Grey shrugged. 'So do I. Steer with your knees. It should be fine.'

Hank almost argued back, but stopped himself and allowed the inventor to run over to crank up his own machine. The noises below filled him with a horrible urgency. He had to get over there and help the others as quickly as he could. He saw Grey hop into his own Flying Machine. Hank took a deep breath and went over all of the instructions he'd been given into how to fly this damned thing. He pushed a foot down on the pedal and the various motors around him began to whir furiously. He gave his Bow one last squeeze to insure it was safely wedged behind his seat before grabbing hold of the steering stick… Jesus, it was as flimsy as Balsa Wood… he pulled the bar out and up. With a noisy splutter and a belch of black smoke, the machine lurched skywards. He pulled up again and the machine jolted another ten feet or so higher. He repeated this series of sickening bunny-hops until Grey motioned from his own airborne machine that they were high enough. He pushed forward on the stick and the machine started to putter towards the canyon, and the battle within.

He followed Grey in dipping downwards a little, and was mildly relieved that none of the enemy began to fire up at them once they were in view. It seemed that Varla was still keeping her word. Keeping one hand on the steering stick he reached behind himself and tried to dislodge his Bow. Great. It seemed that he'd done too good a job of securing it. He lodged the steering stick precariously against his knees and reached back with the other hand to try to free the weapon. With one sharp yank, the Bow was finally released from behind his seat… as was the steering stick from his knees. His flying machine nosedived suddenly, leaving him grappling desperately to regain control while still clutching his unwieldy Bow. With great difficulty, he managed to level off and got control once more.

He looked down at the carnage below. He could see Bobby and Uni holding their own against a tide of Orcs, and although he couldn't see Sheila, there was _something_ making a good dent in the still-surprised enemy… something invisible. He smiled.

'Atta girl,' he murmured. 'Keep that up.'

Further off, Eric and Diana were fighting their way through a fairly loose group of Orcs. There was a figure, bright and tall and confident, striding through the confusion straight towards the Acrobat and Cavalier; a long spear in his hand and great birds wheeling about his head.

_Kosar_.

Orcs, his friends could take, but Kosar was a different matter. After what he'd heard about how strong Kosar had been made by the Starfall, how invulnerable, and how arrogant – if Kosar felt he had a score to settle, then his friends would need all the help they'd be able to get. Carefully, he balanced the steering beam against his knees again, and was glad to be able to stay level this time. He drew an energy bolt back with his Bow…

Paused…

Focused…

Fired.

As the shot of golden energy flew down towards Kosar, Grey began to let rip with his gun from his own flying machine, spraying a clutch of Orcs which were battling some of the bandits below with rudimentary bullets. A huge number of the enemy stared up at the sky with further surprise at this latest sneak attack, giving the Dungeon Master's tiny army a few more precious moments of confusion to take advantage of.

Kosar had not looked up, and Hank couldn't help but feel a small surge of satisfaction as his energy bolt ploughed into the person below, causing him to stumble against his spear.

'Yeah,' Hank muttered as Kosar stared furiously upwards, 'take that. You broke my best friend's heart, you son of a… uh-oh.'

What prompted the 'uh-oh' was the sight of at least a dozen giant, ornate birds swooping up towards him at Kosar's signal. In a panic, he grabbed the steering beam, pulled upwards and forced his flying machine to climb. The machine bunny-hopped and burped its way up, but not fast enough, an soon he found himself being buffeted heavily by the attacking birds. Although he clutched at the steering stick with all his might, every hit from a bird almost caused him to lose control, and twice very nearly jolted him from the contraption altogether. He saw Grey as he struggled – the inventor was pulling up along with him, shouting something incomprehensible as he did so. A particularly heavy bird slammed into Hank's flying machine, jolting it so badly that he lost his grip for a moment. Suddenly, Hank wondered if the birds were toying with him – if they had started off jostling him lightly and were just finding out exactly how much effort it would take to make him tumble. He clutched hard to the steering rod as he saw a larger bird turn and start flapping straight towards him…

Only, the bird didn't hit him. Something long and swift shot down at the creature, puncturing its neck. There was a brief spurt of blood, and then the bird simply dropped out of the sky. As he gazed about himself, another bird was shot down from above, and another, and another, until the sky was practically clear. He noticed that Grey was now staring intently upwards, and that a great shadow had rolled in over the valley. He poked his head out of the tiny flying machine and craned his head up as best he could.

His jaw fell slack. A kamikaze midge flew into his open mouth and he barely noticed.

'Oh,' he breathed. 'Oh holy shit.'

-x-

'Holy _shit_!'

Diana pushed the distracted Eric with her Staff. 'Eyes down, meathead.'

Eric returned his attention fully to the battlefield, slashing his sword out from the protection of his Shield at every given opportunity. 'But did you _see_ it?' he added.

'Course I saw it.' Diana twirled her Staff out at the feet of an Orc still staring aghast at the sky, knocking her enemy to the ground.

'I can't believe you're being so blasé about it!' Eric called to her as they both fought. 'It's a Godammed flying fortress!'

'I know, Eric.'

'I mean, a _palace_! Flying! In the sky!'

'The sky usually _is_ where things fly.' Diana dared to take another quick glance upwards. Janapurna's White Palace was still floating gracefully over the valley. It looked as though Hank and Grey were now being guided up to land on the sailing citadel's courtyard. Diana supposed, then, that the arrows now showering down on clumps of Orcs were being shot from the Palace's walls rather than from Hank & Grey's tiny machines.

'First it floats, then it flies,' Eric continued. 'Good ol' Janapurna.'

Diana smacked an approaching Orc in the face with the end of her Staff, leaving him stunned enough for Eric to swiftly finish him off.

'You love her so much, why don't you just marry her?'

'Cause I haven't knocked her up,' Eric grinned.

Diana ducked backwards and clotheslined another Orc into Eric's blade. 'Was that your idea of a proposal?'

'Would you like it to be?'

Diana blinked at Eric. 'Now's not exactly the time.'

Well, if not now,' countered Eric, 'when?'

The couple were distracted by one another for just long enough. By the time Diana had seen the speedy, furious juggernaut that was Kosar pushing towards them and drawn breath to warn the Cavalier, Kosar was already on them. In the blink of an eye, Kosar had grabbed Eric by the scruff of the neck and bounded away again into the sea of Orcs.

'Eric!'

Diana dodged two Orc weapons, rolled past a third Orc, dealing him a hard blow to the crotch with her Staff as she did so, and sprang to her feet. She could just about make out the crimson of Eric's cape, and tried to fight her way through in pursuit. She had barely got three steps towards him before something, or somebody, grabbed at her hair from behind, pulling her back. She span around to face her attacker, who landed an iron-hard slap on the side of her face without first letting go of her hair. Diana's assailant gave her thick locks another good yank, and she felt a clump of it come painfully away from her scalp. Finally released, with a throbbing cheek and scalp, Diana was able to get a proper look at her attacker. Zinn curled her red lips into a self-satisfied sneer as she let the handful of Diana's hair flutter to the ground.

Diana brushed the edge of her lip with the back of her hand. The slap had been so hard that it had knocked the inside of her cheek into her teeth, drawing a spot of blood. Still, Zinn smiled. Diana found herself matching Eric's former bride's expression.

'Oh no you didn't, bitch.'

-x-

It was with considerable difficulty that Hank managed to manoeuvre his rickety flying machine over the battlements of the airborne White Palace and land it in the courtyard. He was beyond relieved to finally step out of it, however, in spite of the niggling little voice in the back of his head repeatedly reminding him in various tones of alarm that giant stone Citadels should most definitely not be able to fly. The courtyard was hardly the serene sanctuary that they had left six months before – it thronged with females of various races as they hurried to pelt the battlefield below with arrows and spears. A plump, familiar face greeted him as he stepped out of his flying machine.

'Janapurna,' he gasped, 'what a surprise. I didn't know this thing could get airborne.'

'Neither did we,' Janapurna shrugged. 'The old girl just… took off.' She patted a stone wall, lovingly. 'This place goes where it wants to go. It must have wanted to come here, and help you. After all you've done for me, I wasn't about to argue.'

'It isn't just a skirmish down there,' Hank warned, 'it's a war.'

'We know,' Janapurna nodded, calmly. 'We've had a couple of psychics focussing on Zandora for some time now, and she's been able to get into contact recently. She told us everything that's been going on.'

'_Everything_?' Hank asked. 'You… you know about the things I did to my friends…?'

'And the price you paid,' Janapurna confirmed. 'But what's done is done.' She paused, and offered him a supportive smile. 'Come on. We need every archer we can get to man the battlements.'

As they crossed the courtyard they were met by Grey, lugging his "auto-reloading-gunpowder-propelled-pellet-shooting-turret" to a better vantage point.

'This is incredible,' Grey enthused as he puffed under the weight of his invention. 'Looks like marble. What's keeping it up?'

'Determination,' replied Janapurna, simply.

'Never give up your engineering secrets, eh?' Grey beamed. 'I like her.'

'Most people do,' Janapurna replied. 'See, when I was a baby there was a spell put on me… oh, it's a long story. Maybe it should wait.' She pointed at an unmanned spot on the ramparts. 'We need more firepower there, if you gentlemen wouldn't mind.'

'Sure,' Hank replied.

He hurried forward, but noticed that Janapurna had fallen behind. He stopped, and turned.

'You not coming?'

'I don't have a particularly good aim,' Janapurna admitted. 'Besides…' she nodded at a wooden beam evidently left over from the fire six months ago. Clinging to it miserably was a dry, bewildered seal-like creature.

'Unpronounceables don't exactly take well to the sky,' Janapurna explained. 'Poor Aurore. Somebody has to look after her.'

'An Unpronounceable,' Grey muttered, setting up his invention. 'Thought I'd never see one in real life – last I heard, they were going the way of the Unicorns.'

'Janapurna rescued her,' Hank replied. 'I think she's kinda her pet, in a way…'

Hank glanced over his shoulder as Janapurna scooped Aurore up in her arms, planting a lingering kiss on the creature's snout. Hank's eyes widened.

'Oh! Or… or maybe not.'

'I've seen stranger couples,' smiled Grey.

Hank paused, thinking back to the occasions that he'd met Janapurna. 'Actually, it sorta makes sense, once you think about it.'

'Let me guess.' Grey started lining up the sights on his device. 'You made a play for her once, but she wasn't interested.'

'No!' Hank frowned. 'Well… yes.'

Grey just laughed and went back to his invention. Hank pulled back his Bow, took aim at a group or Orcs below, and began to fire at them once again.

-x-

An arrow whistled past Eric's ear. The archers and spearwomen in the floating fortress above seemed to be doing a pretty good job at only launching projectiles into groups of the enemy… so far. That arrow had been a little too close for comfort. Normally, he'd have complained about it, but at that point it was the least of his troubles. Kosar found a spot in the battlefield that was quiet enough for him to be able to mash Eric's face to a fine paste without being disturbed, and threw the Cavalier down on the ground. Eric just about managed to flip himself face-up, but didn't get chance to draw either his Shield or his sword before he was kicked hard in the ribs. Winded and agonised, it was all that he could do to ready his Shield before the second attack.

Kosar kicked furiously, his frustration at the magical energy of the weapon protecting Eric visibly rising.

'Shrinking away behind that Shield again, Cavalier?' Kosar spat. 'Just like you used to back when we met.'

'I seem to recall,' Eric gasped, 'swinging in, Tarzan-style, to save your bacon.'

Kosar tried to wrestle the Shield from Eric, but the weapon was strong enough to resist where Eric knew he would not. 'I don't owe you anything, Cavalier.'

Kosar stepped back in frustration. Eric saw his window to get back up on his feet.

'Then leave me alone,' the Cavalier replied. 'Let it go.'

Kosar shook his head, spinning the Spear of Rameh effortlessly in his hand. 'I fight with Furnus.'

'Why?' Eric managed to block a lunge from the Spear. 'You're just as powerful as her – if not more. Why bother?'

Kosar lashed out with the Spear again, and once more it just bounced off the Shield's protective wall of energy.

'Stop cowering!' Kosar fumed. 'Stop cringing! Stop trying to persuade me to save your life! You've humiliated me, and you _will_ pay. Both of you. And if you won't fight with me I'll punish her first.'

Eric scowled. 'You leave Diana alone. She waited for you all those years – it's not her fault you turned into the biggest creep in the universe. You broke her heart!'

'And I suppose you think you were able to fix her.' Kosar jabbed fruitlessly again with the Spear.

'I can make her happy,' Eric retorted. 'And _I'll_ always be there for her, unlike some.'

'She'll never stay content with you,' Kosar goaded. 'Do you really see her as a potential wife? Mother to your children? That won't happen.'

'It already has,' Eric blurted.

Kosar stopped knocking the Cavalier's Shield. His face fell into a faint frown. 'What?'

Eric locked eyes with Kosar. He almost felt sorry for the big jerk. He knew what it felt like to have a gargantuan ego crushed to the size of a raisin.

'She's pregnant with my kid,' Eric told Kosar, softly. 'We're keeping it, and I'm gonna marry her. I'm sorry, Kosar. It's over. You lost her.'

Kosar blinked slowly, casting his gaze away from Eric's, and for a second it seemed as though Kosar was about to break into tears.

He should have seen it coming. He should have known that it was a trick, but Eric let his guard down for just an instant…

The Spear sailed in a long arc towards him, knocking the Shield from his hands. Before Eric could retaliate, he'd been thrown to the ground again. Kosar towered over him; ready to slam the spear into his chest, but Eric managed to knock the weapon to one side. Still, Kosar bore his weight down on the prone Cavalier, in an attempt to press the Spear sideways on onto his throat and choke him. Eric caught hold of the Spear's handle in both hands, but it was all that he could do to just about keep the weapon from crushing his windpipe.

'I know you're angry,' Eric managed, 'but if you love her so much, why can't you just let her be happy?'

'_Love?_' Kosar hissed. 'After the way she betrayed me – leaving me for somebody like _you_…?'

Kosar jolted the Spear a little. Eric was losing his grip.

'She told me about all those other men back on your homeworld,' added Kosar. 'If you truly are all she needs, why did she crawl into all of those other beds back then, when yours was available?'

'Her heart was broken,' gasped Eric, 'she went into self-destruct. She's better now…'

'She's a harlot,' Kosar retorted. 'She always was, and she always will be. And she'll make a fool of you the way she tried to do with me.'

Eric managed a defiant grimace. 'I'm a fool already.'

'Not for much longer.'

Kosar pushed down again, but Eric noticed that the other man's hands were beginning to tremble. Again, Eric concentrated on Kosar's face. There was something else in his expression – something more than fury and damaged pride. Eric renewed his effort into pushing back the Spear, and found that it was slightly easier to resist than before.

'So I'll die for her,' Eric replied. 'Wouldn't you do the same?'

'Don't be ridiculous.'

'But you love her,' prompted Eric, 'don't you?'

Kosar faltered. The pressure on the Spear grew weaker still.

'She's a whore,' retorted Kosar. 'A base, mortal, animal whore, impregnated with the seed of an imbecile. She isn't worth dying for, you stupid little man.'

'You _do_ love her.'

'I do not love that woman.'

Eric felt something spark across the Spear. It was now or never. With all of his remaining strength, he clutched at the weapon, twisting it around. Kosar was able to keep a grip of the Spear, but in his surprise lost control over it. Eric pulled the Spear around so that the pointed tip was aimed at Kosar's chest, and lunged.

'Liar.'

Kosar's eyes widened as the Spear plunged into him. His expression was not one of pain; more shock, turning quickly to indignation.

Kosar choked a little, still clutching the Spear that had skewered him. 'You idiot. I'm an immortal!'

Still beneath Kosar, Eric shook his head apologetically. 'Not quite, Kosar. Not quite.'

'You tasted this Spear yourself,' Kosar gasped, 'and you survived.'

'Wasn't my lie that powered it when I was stabbed,' Eric explained. 'It's only fatal to the one who told the lie. It was used by Rameh in early court hearings – murder trials. The accused would be made to swear on it – if they'd done the crime, they'd be found guilty and executed at the same time. You owned that thing all these years and never even read up on its history?'

Kosar set his teeth furiously and pulled out the Spear. Sparkling, crystal fluid began to flood from the wound – the Child of the Stargazer was bleeding to death. He cupped the wound with his hands, watching his shimmering blood pooling between his fingers in disbelief. He looked back across at Eric.

'I'm sorry,' Eric breathed.

Kosar continued to stare at him, oddly.

'You will never leave.'

'What?'

'You will never go home,' Kosar repeated, calmly. 'You will be consumed by Evil, and neither of you will ever go home.'

Eric narrowed his eyes at Kosar. 'You're not exactly in a position to threaten me, you know.'

'It isn't a threat,' Kosar replied. 'It is what shall be.'

Kosar reached out a hand, covered in his sticky, sparkling blood, and pressed it hard against Eric's forehead.

Eric knocked the hand away. 'What was that? Was that a Hex? Did you just Hex me?'

Kosar gave no reply. He slumped to the ground, amidst a growing lake of glittering blood, and there he stayed.

-x-

The mournful cries of Kosar's remaining few birds could mean only one thing – the Child of the Stargazer was dead. Even though Kosar had ended up on the side of his enemy, Presto couldn't help but feel saddened by his passing. He determined to meditate on the fallen star's soul later on… if, that was, there was to be a "later on". He battled towards Furnus. For the first time that he could remember, the Fire Demon's whereabouts were completely clear to him. Perhaps it was because she was so physically close, or perhaps… just perhaps, his powers were finally growing to match hers.

She was only a few metres away now. He brought another blast of magical energy down upon the Orcs surrounding him, topping them like bowling pins… and there she was; the Nemesis that had been so elusive to him for so long. She towered over Presto – a grand figure of flickering light and heat – but, Presto noted as he regarded her, she was no bigger than Venger. Her back was turned to him with her arms outstretched – it appeared that she was halfway through opening up a portal to her homeworld of fire and brimstone. Presto bunched his fists, feeling the magic crackle down through his arms. Furnus turned her head, and seemed surprised to find him there. She tried to hurl a bolt of magic at Presto, but as her concentration was still largely focussed on the portal, it was weak, and Presto was able to easily deflect it.

The portal was big enough already for a trickle of Fire Zombies to squeeze through, and Presto could see two large Fire Dragons waiting on the other side for the entrance to grow large enough for them to pass. He raised his own arms and concentrated on closing up the door to the other world at the same time that Furnus was trying to open it. The only physical experience he could liken it to was arm wrestling… although since he'd never even been able to beat so much as Sheila at an arm wrestling match in his life, the analogy didn't exactly fill him with confidence. This time, however, he was managing to put up a Hell of a fight. Furnus grunted with effort to keep the portal from closing and twice shrieked with fury, throwing spheres of weakened magic at him in attempts to make him stop. After a moment of stalemate, she turned her head around – 180 degrees around, in fact, to address him.

'This is pointless.'

'For you, perhaps,' Presto replied, still concentrating on the portal. 'This ends today, one way or the other. We have the element of surprise, we have better weaponry. We're beating your Orcs, and Kosar has already fallen. Leave this world now, and never come back, or you'll be destroyed too.'

'I know the Child of the Stargazer has fallen,' Furnus sneered. 'He was a silly, spoiled youth, who allowed himself to be bothered by the whims of a mortal female. That he is gone is of no inconvenience to me. As for your flying fortress and your clever weapons… they are nothing on what's to come.'

'Your Fire Dragons may have claimed Whitewood's life,' Presto retorted, 'but they don't frighten me. They won't even get through this portal.' He pooled his energy and pushed his hands together. The portal began to slowly close, despite Furnus' struggle.

Furnus smiled a bright, terrible smile. 'I did not mean the Fire Dragons.'

Presto frowned. He felt his concentration weaken. 'You don't mean…'

'I felt it was time,' grinned Furnus, 'that _He_ became involved.'

'No,' Presto breathed, his grip on the portal growing ever weaker. 'You wouldn't…'

'If I am victorious today,' Furnus explained, 'He will be pleased. And if I am defeated, He will bring vengeful destruction.'

'He could destroy the world!'

'How does that concern me?' Furnus asked. 'It is not my world.'

Him. _Him!_ He was coming. No matter whether this battle was won or lost, He had been summoned, and nothing now could stop His arrival. Presto lost control over the portal. Furnus speedily opened the doorway to the other world fully and, before Presto could retaliate, curled into herself and disappeared, literally into a cloud of smoke.

_He was coming. He was coming._

For a moment, the battlefield span in front of Presto's eyes. Fire Zombies were pouring now from the rip in reality, and two large, bright creatures were pounding towards him, fast.

_What difference did it make? He was coming. It was over._

He stared down at the ground and re-oriented himself. He'd think of something. Somehow. They'd faced off No-Name before, and… well… it seemed He'd gotten bored and wandered off. Maybe they could make that work a second time.

Maybe.

First, he had to get through this in one piece. There was still, after all, a battle raging about him. There was heat above him – extreme heat, not far from his head, as though somebody were dangling a bonfire right above him. He had lost his concentration. The portal was open. And that meant…

He looked up. Two huge Fire Dragons hung over him, their jaws parting into open snarls.

'Oh, great.'

-x-


End file.
